Screenplay.com Forums

Hi! I'm new to Dramatica (though I've used the software to write a couple of stories - a screenplay and a stage play), and I'm slowing coming to terms with the overwhelming array of terms, definitions and usages!

I have two key questions: Can my Contagonist also act as the IC? In the story I'm developing, a woman escapes a potentially unproductive marriage (responding to the cajoling of duty), to go find her estranged brother who's been missing for almost a decade. She meets an intriguing man who's also the brother's friend, and they join forces to track him down. Only, the brother's friend is actually the hitman that's been commisioned to take her brother out. The question at the end of the day is whether or not this two will find each other, and the hitman break the code by not killing her brother.

To summarize, these are my two key questions: 1) Can the Contagonist also be the Impact Character? 2) Is there a potential for confusing story goals if on the one hand a) the woman's actually running away from the demands of duty and b) the stated mission of looking for her brother.

Also, it would be great to have any examples of stories that fit into either of my scenarios.

Thanks so much for such a detailed study of Story.

Kind regards

Deboaxe

1. YES, absolutely -- a Contagonist may be the IC, and even the MC.
2. NO, it is not contradictory from a structural point of view, but it may appear to be contradictory to an audience who doesn't know the whole picture. This is great for creating tension in the character, the story, and the audience. It will require you to be careful when writing so that you have the character functioning as the contagonist in the Overall Story throughline, while providing the perspective most influential to that of the Main Character.

Go for it!

Thanks a lot for the feedback. Very reassuring.

Kind regards